Post workout shakes are like getting rewarded after beating yourself into the ground in a workout. They were totally invented as positive reinforcement. Not because they refuel you, but because they taste like heaven.
If you have read my blog for a little now, you know I love working out. Absolutely love it. Mostly in the form of CrossFit. I don’t like going to 24 hour fitness or other globo-type gyms and just lifting weights or running on the treadmill. I love being in a class format with my close friends, sweating a ton, lifting quickly and doing cardio at the same time, going through a lot of pain in a short amount of time, and seeing results. That’s what CrossFit is. CrossFit to me is about working hard for your results. It’s not about judging other people or feeling uncomfortable in the gym. It’s about finding your inner fire and learning about your body. I know that sounds lame, but I’m serious. CrossFit gave me confidence, it made me a hard worker, and it’s brought me closer to people I would never have known without my gym. CrossFit has honestly made me the person and I am today and I truly love that person.
Quick back story if you haven’t read my blog for very long. STORY TIME YAY. I started CrossFit around 2010ish. I competed in CrossFit Southwest Regional twice in 2011 then 2012. I ate, drank, and breathed CrossFit. It was the only thing I did. I wanted to get stronger and faster AND sexier. For me, that didn’t seem to be possible. When I started to compete, I put on about 30 pounds, mostly muscle, I think. I got stronger AND faster, but I didn’t fit into any of my clothes other than my Lululemon spandex, and my acne was out of control. I went back and forth about how I felt in my skin, but it was a bit exhausting not feeling comfortable regularly. After Regionals 2012 and an injury soon thereafter, I decided that I didn’t want to compete in CrossFit anymore. I wanted to feel good in my skin and be comfortable with myself. So I did what was very hard for me and cut back in my weights in workouts. I stopped trying to beat others in workouts and just concentrated on myself.
After probably 3-4 months, I had lost almost 10 pounds. After over 1 year, I think I’ve lost about 15 pounds, but I try to not get on the scale because the scale doesn’t mean sh*t. I don’t know what my weight is now and I probably won’t until I go to the doctor and that b*tch makes me step on a scale. Dumb. But I am finally comfortable in my skin for the first time in years. I still CrossFit usually 6 times per week, but I tend to not go very heavy in my workouts. I eat more than I used to and I don’t worry near as much about being super strict with my diet. I honestly believe that my hormones were so out of control from lifting so heavy, that my body just couldn’t handle it. The less I lift super heavy, the more my body evens out and the happier I am. The happier I am, the more my body does the things I want it to do. It’s weird.
So anyways, I sometimes like post workout food and sometimes don’t. Yesterday, I did. So I made a shake that would refuel me AND keep me even more hyper than I already am. It did the job. I was bouncing through the roof while I taught my CrossFit classes. They were annoyed. I was thrilled. It was awkward. And based on the length of this post, I’m still really hyper. I’ll stop now.
Post Workout Sweet Potato Coffee Protein Shake
- Yield: 1-2 1x
Ingredients
- 1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed, cooked, and frozen* (about 1 cup)
- 2 cups almond milk
- 1 scoop Vanilla Primal Fuel (or any protein you prefer)
- 1 tablespoon sweetener (honey, maple syrup, etc.)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2–1 teaspoon ground coffee (depending what you prefer)
- 1 tablespoon groundchia seeds (this is optional, but it thickens the shake a bit)
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a Blendtec (or other blender/food processor) and puree until completely smooth.
- Drink up buttercup!
Notes
I cooked the cubed sweet potato at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes, then let it cool and froze it over night. If you don’t have frozen, cooked sweet potato, just add a cooked sweet potato along with 2 cups of ice
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Any tips on how to make this Whole30 approved? Would that just be too much coconut milk to drink?
I honestly don’t know a ton about whole30 rules nowadays
Honestly, post workout shakes aren’t very easy to make whole thirty friendly. You’d have to take out the sweetener, and the vanilla, and find a whole 30 friendly protein powder, which is really difficult to do.
I’d save this delicious sounding shake for post whole 30.
Ok, Juli – I love you and I love your blog. Your attitude about working out and food is fantastic. So how on earth can you say that you love Dash of Meg? It’s like watching a raging ED-trainwreck! She is the total anti-thesis of a healthy attitude and lifestyle. It makes me frustrated that you would ever tout her as an example of “health.”
I have to agree re: A Dash of Meg 🙁
i’m really not sure why you guys feel that way…can you explain? all i’ve seen her post is pictures of great food and some selfies at the gym…
Read her archives – she is not healthy. It’s really sad.
Wow, yeah. the girl behind A Dash of Meg has one of the most restrictive diets and triggering blogs around.. Maybe just a deeper background check before tipping your hat to an HLB — so many are not what they appear to be.
But you are, so keep on keepin on!!
Well I’m basing this recipe off of her sweet potato shakes she always makes an her Instagram which are awesome looking and healthy as far as I know!
I am going to have to agree on Meg. She is so far down the rabbit hole I don’t know if she will ever get out. Orthoexia at its finest.
She has a disordered history with eating, swears she is “100% cured” of it but self-diagnoses food intolerances based on pseudo-science books and uses this as an excuse to restrict her diet to 8-10 foods. I mean, last week on her Instagram, she must have posted a roasted acorn squash with ground meat and and egg at least 4 times.
Yeah, she doesn’t drink those shakes anymore because apparently the whey protein (for which she was compensated by a protein powder company to promote) upset her digestion too. Post workout, she eats sweet potato & chicken now.
How is that disordered eating? I eat sweet potatoes 5-6x a week for breakfast and rotate the same foods all the time because it’s easy and time is not of my essence to be making all kinds of food. Also, you don’t need to read a completely backed book to be able to tell if your body is intolerant of something. If you are aware of your body and how it feels, it really isn’t hard to decide when things bother it (I know how much even gluten free products upset my stomach and that took about 2 times of eating GF products to figure it out). I haven’t followed her much, but what I’ve seen looks fairly normal, and to say somebody is still disordered because they eat the same foods FOUR TIMES A WEEK (the horror!!!!!) and have cut foods out of their diet because they feel like it doesn’t do well with their body is not necessarily disordered… What would you expect a person to do that wasn’t disorder? Should they make a new set of food every single day? Or eat things that they don’t feel well when eating? I guess I’m a little confused about what seems so off about that. Those don’t seem like valid facts to be pointing fingers at somebody about such serious things.
I just want to clarify that I’m not disappointed with you like other are saying… I just agreed that I am sad for her 🙁
Thanks Ali 🙂
Agreed on Dash of Meg. She is a dangerous force in the HLB world– serving as ED inspiration and the poster girl for orthorexia and anorexia to young, impressionable girls on the internet. I’m really disappointed that you featured her.
jesus ladies
LMAO!!
Wow, I was a little hesitant about expressing my opinion on Meg, but I’m glad to see I’m not the only one. Ditto to what everyone else has said. She has a documented, admitted history of ED. She claims she is fine now, but consistent review of her blog shows otherwise. So disordered. She jumps from one “diet” to the next, spurred by a variety of digestive/dietary issues and allergies. Pictures show her terribly underweight (her legs! the skeletal face!). It’s just sad.
Some people are naturally thin. I’m naturally “underweight” and would be pretty hurt if people on the internet were throwing out random things about me still having an ED. Also, even if she does have an eating disorder, to say rude things about somebody DOESN’T help. It’s a DISORDER! It’s a serious thing! And even if in 5 years she realizes that she has some disorder still lingering, posting mean things publicly about somebody is just ridiculous. If you have a concern about somebody’s eating, take it to them personally. And she did Whole 30 and has cut gluten and other things that are known to cause inflammation. It’s sad when people bash others on the internet, especially on somebody else’s blog. And as somebody who writes a blog, if a smoothie on somebody’s blog looks good, then drink it! It’s not like because somebody has a “healthy living” blog, they can’t read somebody who MIGHT have some disordered eating.
Sweet potato shakes?? Yes! Being comfortable in your own skin?? Hurray! Whole conversations on strange tangents?? I love your blog, Juli!
This looks delicious! I love Meg over @ A Dash of Meg! She eats real food, does workouts that fit her body and has such a positive attitude!
I get what you’ve gone through. I’m going through it now.
Its not about public pressure or perception. Its all about me not feeling like I used to, which was happy in my skin with my size.
I don’t know what happened really…I transitioned from SAD diet to a paleo/crossfit lifestyle. At first the results were awesome but they didn’t last. As I’ve started to crossfit more, I just see myself gaining weight (fat, and a little muscle, but mostly fat), and all in my midsection.
I wish I knew how to combat it. I’ve tried higher protein, lower protein, less fat, more fat, less calories, more calories, less sugar, more sugar.
Mainly I’m just frustrated and annoyed now that I workout 4-6x a week and don’t see any results when other people are posting these amazing transformation pics.
I’m not saying I don’t have muscle or parts I like, but my midsection will just not get leaner.
I guess its not in the cards (genetics) for me.
I am going through the exact same thing Christina!
I started getting stronger, and my body needed more fuel to keep up with my training. Now I seem to have plateaued. I’m happy with how far my body has come, but my midsection just wont let up!!! I actually think that I gained weight. I’m cutting back on my carbs (mostly rice which I know isn’t strict Paleo) and seeing how that works.
Don’t give up, because cards and genetics don’t control your life.
If we can take anything from this post it is to keep fine tuning our diets a little bit more and keep experimenting until we find our solution!
Thank you so much for such a great post Juli!!
Thanks Maya! 🙂 Good luck to you 🙂
In reply to Christina, Don’t feel badly! Overloading the system with stress is bound to cause weight gain and screw with your cortisol. I really think many people do too much and eat too little.
Just because your friends are experiencing enviable results doesn’t mean you know the whole story. I looked ‘super great’ at about the 5month mark, but felt like sh*t at about the two year mark. i started going into depletion mode. Skin, period, fatigue issues. I tried and tried to add back in carbs (sweet potatoes) but my system wasn’t having it; it was all too much fiber and not enough energy to digest. My hair was falling out, temps were low. It was all too much on my body.
These days I just walk and eat whatever the hell I please and my digestion and sleep has never been better. Yes, I gained back all the weight and softness, but after working on self esteem issues I’ve found other things that fulfill me just as much, and I am still a desirable and likable human being, I’d like to think.
Please find your happy medium, whether it’s a gentler form of paleo/crossfit or finding something new. It’s worth it.
Thank you Mila, its very comforting to hear that other women have experienced the same thing and didn’t automatically assume I’m delusioned about weight loss or muscle gain. I appreciate your encouragement, good luck to you!
The exact same thing happened to me. Going too low carb and overexercising can do this for many women. They are both stressors on your body and can impact your hormonal balance. Fat accumulation in the abdominal area is cortisol related. It can also go hand in hand with thyroid issues and PCOS, which are very common in women. Going too low carb can mess up your conversion of t4 to t3. You will be producing a lot more reverse t3, which is not good. Cortisol inhibits the production of sex hormones.
Try to get more rest and cut back on vigourous exercise (just walk or yoga on off days, if you must). Get as much sleep as possible, min 8 hours. Add in a few more healthy carbs. Make sure you are eating an adequate amount of healthy fat (hormones are made from fat). If you are having fatty meat or fish, you got enough there. If not, make sure you adding 1-2 tbsp per meal. A key for me was quitting coffee, which was very hard, but it was jacking up my cortisol levels. Also avoid soy and high phytoestrogen foods like the plague.
If none of this works, get to a doctor and have your hormone levels checked, including a FULL thyroid panel (including tsh, t3, t4, reverse t3 and thyroid antibodies which is linked to Hashimoto’s, very under-diagnosed and will make weight loss impossible). Get checked for androgens too to rule out PCOS.
Hope this helps!
Thanks for this post – love to hear you’re happy in your skin. It’s so true – the happier you are, the more your body does what you want it to. Also, thanks for the info in your replies on this post. I was actually just talkin to the nutritionist who works at the gym where I work about my hormone levels. A couple things are telling me they are a little … off. It was nice to find this strand of comments with women experiencing the same stuff. Stay strong but stay healthy – and working!
Christina I struggle with the midsection monster as well. It sounds like you’re doing great in the workout dept but if you’re still struggling I’d recommend you evaluate your diet. At one of the heaviest times in my life, I wasn’t able to work out, frustrated with my weight, I changed my whole diet. Going primal was a big step and change. What made the difference significant however was cutting out dairy and sugar-completely. I know you said you’ve tried it all, but the most important thing is to listen to your body. I lost weight (my stomach was flat for once) by diet alone. I really hope you are able to reach your goals. Just don’t give up!!
Akways interested in trying different post work shakes that are all about healthy! Thanks for sharing 🙂
That is such a great idea!
Hi girl! Love your recipes? Contemplating the start of protein powder-just started working out regularly for the past four months. What made you choose the kind you did? Thanks!
they contacted me a long time ago, i tried out there product and absolutely loved it, especially since it didn’t upset my stomach like all other proteins i had tried in the past
I’ve been trying protein powders and finally found Garden of Life Raw. I tried a couple of whey ones and it seemed like they left a bad taste and too much mucous in the back of my throat. I’ve been trying to get well from some tummy troubles. Either antibiotics, candida, or switching back from vegan to meat has really messed me up. I’m going to try this with pumpkin and a little brewed coffee. I’m afraid the grounds might kill on the way through. Anyway, I thought Paleo was no dairy and whey is dairy. Our ancestors would not milk cows or have factory processed whey. You probably address this somewhere Julie and I’m showing my ignorance, sorry. Keep those awesome recipes coming!
This a great idea! I like that you added coffee to this. I usually workout in the morning so after my workout I grab a coffee and couple egg whites to refuel. This combines both caffeine and protein. Also, like the sweet potato addition. I would never think to add one to a shake. I’m curious what that tastes like.
You’re so pretty! I love hearing about your workouts and how you stay fit. I don’t do crossfit but I’m a marathoner (throw in a couple spin classes a week for recovery) and try and hit up a couple yoga classes and do TRX once a week. Do you do any serious cardio (or is crossfit cardio enough?). I feel like Paleo has leaned me out in some ways but still feeling fluffy/puffy in the belly and booty. But I definitely think Paleo has helped me with my eating issues and feeling better about my body. And since I’m turning 40 next week, I am happy that after this many years , I can finally feel fit AND healthy! Your recipes are amazing!!!
absolutely! crossfit is completely all core work and you’re getting a ton of cardio in whether it’s during a run or row or just while you’re lifting weights and doing pull ups. in the summer, i run more because i like running outside and running to crossfit, but i’ve seen more changes in my stomach and love handles from just crossfit alone
All I need to see is sweet potato and coffee in the same title, and I’m sold! I just recently discovered your blog, and I think you’re awesome! This shake sounds amazing. Do you have an opinion on Blendtec vs. Vitamix? I don’t have either, and I think it’s time I invest in one of the two.
Haven’t tried a vitamin but I know I love my blendtec